RISING STAR

CGCA (Creative Glass Center of America) and AACG (Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass) once again sponsored GlassWeekend at Wheaton Arts on the weekend of June 7, 2013. GlassWeekend has featured a group of “Rising Stars” at their last two events in 2009 and 2011. In the past the artists were selected by the GlassWeekend Committee (2009) and by the participating galleries (2011). For 2013 the “Rising Stars” were selected by the Regional Glass Groups from around the country, with MCGAG (Midwest Contemporary Glass Art Group) making the selection in our geographic area.

MCGAG is very proud to have chosen Carmen Lozar as our “Rising Star.” Why did we choose to sponsor Carmen Lozar? The answer is that we think she is fabulous—She is technically fabulous and a fabulous person. She works with a number of themes and is capable of executing anything she comes up with. Her work is always interesting and a surprise. In addition, she is a lovely person, very nice and very sweet, delightful to talk to always.

Carmen Lozar was awarded a residency at the Corning Museum of Glass prior to attending graduate school at Alfred University where she received the MFA in 2003. Carmen has been a demonstrating artist for two GAS (Glass Art Society) conferences, and was the keynote speaker and demonstrator for the International Flameworking Conference in Salem, New Jersey in 2008. In 2011, Carmen taught at the Penland School of Craft in North Carolina and she will teach at Pilchuck Glass School this summer. Carmen shows her work throughout the United States and Canada, and she is represented by major galleries in Seattle, Chicago, Palm Desert, and Toronto. Carmen Lozar lives in Bloomington-Normal, Illinois where she maintains a studio and is a member of the art faculty in the Ames School of Art at Illinois Wesleyan University.

GlassWeekend provided Carmen room and board while at Wheaton Arts and MCGAG awarded Carmen an honorarium to cover transportation and ancillary expenses. Each artist was also asked to donate a work to the dinner auction held on Saturday night. Carmen donated a wonderful piece!

Bruce Bendoff, MCGAG President, introduced Carmen to the assembly at the Friday afternoon Ice Cream Social. Carmen did a technical presentation for the group on Saturday.